‘Comic Coup’ Only Helped Montenegro PM, Mandic Says

One of the opposition leaders accused of being involved in last year’s alleged plot tells BIRN that the charges against him are politically motivated and casts doubts on the prosecution’s independence.

Dusica Tomovic

BIRN

Podgorica

Andrija Mandic. Photo: nova.org.me.

Andrija Mandic, one of the opposition leaders charged in the terror plot case in Montenegro, says the alleged coup in October was invented to help the party of former Prime Minister Milo Djukanovic to win another election, while the Russian state and his alliance, the Democratic Front, had nothing to do with it.

In an interview with BIRN, Mandic claimed that it was a “staged political process that had multiple goals”, and he believes that “Djukanovic's regime would have fallen on October 16 had there been no help from the false plot.

“What they are presenting as a coup is the funniest coup in the history of coups. In order to make it successful, someone needs to be accused and convicted, so I do not believe in a fair trial before the Montenegrin courts in this case,” Mandic said.

“No one in Montenegro doubts the poor state of the Montenegrin judiciary, the nepotism, corruption ...,” he added.

The government and Djukanovic have several times denied claims it “staged”, stating that it expects the prosecution to fully resolve the case.

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